– Dr. Maitha bint Salem Al Shamsi, Minister of State, reiterated the UAE’s support for the efforts of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, UNRWA, to protect the rights and dignity of the Palestinian people.
“The UAE values the efforts of the UNRWA to achieve social stability for the Palestinian people and back its campaign,” said Dr. Al Shamsi while delivering the UAE’s address at the UNRWA Donors Conference in Rome, Italy, which was held yesterday and co-hosted by Egypt, Jordan and Sweden.
Al Shamsi stressed that the UAE is committed to continuing its support for the Palestinian people while stressing that the country has offered US$500 million over the last five years.
“The UAE was among the first countries to fill the funding shortfall of the UNRWA’s education budget, by contributing $45 million over three years. Apart from its annual voluntary contribution of $1.8 million, the UAE has pledged $2 million to United Nations, UN, programmes that aim to provide fuel for the electricity sector in Gaza,” she further added.
“We commend the UNRWA’s commitment to achieving social stability and cohesion among the most vulnerable groups in the Palestinian refugee community, in a region that is suffering from the effects of the Syrian crisis, terrorism and the growing risk of extremism,” she further said.
During the conference, the agency’s donors only pledged $100 million, out of the $446 million required to support the needs of Palestinian refugees.
WAM/Tariq alfaham/Hassan Bashir